Super creative title

Literacy. A word that didn’t really have any meaning to me at the beginning of the semester, but now I have spent 3 months reading, discussing, and writing about this word. So, now I write this final blog post and I ask myself, “What have I learned?”

I think that what I have learned the most about literacy is that it is ALWAYS changing, and that it isn’t the same for everyone. The way that literacy actually piles up is really interesting and would be awesome to discover all of the ways this happens with my generation. I feel like we are a transition between what used to be, and what needs to be. Also, in the Hamilton article, there is a passage that talks about the many different “artefacts” that are involved with literacy. One of these mentioned is a computer, which she describes as a writing tool. Hamilton also states, “We began by thinking in terms of activities as simply reading and writing, but a very large number of newspaper images involve people displaying, holding, inspecting, possessing or giving, discussing and disputing written texts of various sorts.” Thinking about a computer as an artefact, I now realize that photos aren’t necessary to document people sharing written texts because we now have the internet. Computers allow us to share information instantly, research something immediately, and read/write whenever we get the chance. I recall the story that you shared with us about the elementary students who were using google docs to read each other’s stories, and to share a joint document between all of them. How amazing is that! What teacher would want to limit the ideas and the possibilities that computers and technology can bring to education? I have one professor this semester who completely despises the use of any electronics in her classroom. When I read the syllabus at the beginning of the semester I was completely put off with the idea. I had to buy a course pack of short stories that I could have easily found online. I think that as a future teacher there needs to be a way to implement technology into every classroom because it is a literacy that is evolving and becoming prominent everywhere.

My book club text “Just Girls” made me continuously question how different the study would have turned out if it was done today. The use of computers and social media drastically effects adolescents today and changes the way they view literacy. How much does the need to get Instagram likes and twitter retweets change the way they read and write? Do they text each other in class instead of write notes? Are they checking Instagram for the latest fashion and gossip instead of reading magazines? There are so many ways that the book is “outdated”, but at the same time I was able to relate to everything, which brings me back to the idea of my generation being an awkward transition. We are so open to these new technologies and ways of literacy, but we also can remember when we used to pass notes and check books out from the library.

This class has been so much fun, and I can easily say that it was my favorite this semester! I really enjoy your teaching Kim, and all of the group work that we did. I can’t wait to be in another class of yours next semester!